


Truth Be Told

by abbybear



Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Ending, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Confessions, Fix-It, Hurt Tony Stark, M/M, Memory Loss, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Sad and Happy, Steve Needs a Hug, Steve Rogers Feels, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, Truth Sharing, about damn time, light fluff, steve tells the truth
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-23
Updated: 2018-06-23
Packaged: 2019-05-27 04:27:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,614
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15016649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/abbybear/pseuds/abbybear
Summary: After Steve leaves, Tony makes no move to get up.  He plans to stay in that bunker until someone drags him out of there.  Not that anyone will be looking for him in Siberia.-or-Steve and T'Challa find Tony several days later where Steve left him.  Lucky for Steve, Stark survived the cold and cannot remember their last tête-à-tête.Alternate title:  Steve Rogers Finally Tells the Truth





	Truth Be Told

**Author's Note:**

> Welp. I am supposed to be studying. Of course I think it's a great time to finally write an actual fix-it AU. Fuck me.
> 
> Warning: I wrote this in the last three hours. My cats beta-read for me. They're sort of shitty at that kind of thing, so let me know if you see anything needing fixin'.
> 
>  
> 
> Disclaimer: I have three cats. Four birds. One fish. Zero Marvels.

When Pepper appears on the news, Steve starts to worry. The Stark CEO announces Tony Stark’s disappearance and offers a significant sum as a reward for any news that helps locate the billionaire.  She gets ushered away from the microphone when her tears start to choke her words.

“He can't still be in Siberia.  He must have gotten on his plane after we left.”

He convinces himself by talking to Bucky's frozen form.  T’Challa catches him mid discussion.

“Mr. Stark flew his suit to meet you, Captain. I would have expected he would have left in the same manner.”

The king notices his guest's widening eyes as he keeps staring at the cryotube before him.

“Oh God, what did we do Buck.”

They’re both on the Quinjet heading north within minutes.

 

***

 

Tony tries to move his head, but the half of his helmet still attached to the armor keeps him still.  Last he remembered he was sitting upright. Now he's facedown with a mouth full of concrete.

He expects he's freezing, but his skin feels hot against his busted suit.  He loses another few hours after he manages to roll over on his side and vomit.

His mouth feels like cold cotton.  He remembers eating a handful of snow that fell through the broken bunker roof about a day ago. He does that again and prefers the flavor of dirt to the stale puke still on his tongue.

He hears Yinsen telling him to get up and go, but he stays down. He hears his mother begging for him to survive, but he can't move.

The sound of actual voices makes his ears blare. Tony is glad he passes out from the pain.

 

***

 

“Your shield, Captain.  Either he left it behind or Stark is still here.”

Steve is already running. When he sees Tony down on the ground and deathly still, he stops.

T’Challa continues to move forward, checking the unresponsive man's pulse with a deep frown.

“His heart rate is slow.  We must get him warm.” The king motions for Steve to come closer as he tests the weight of the armor.

“Can you carry him?  We will need to get him out of the suit once we're aboard, but we shouldn't leave the Iron Man technology here.”

Steve lifts the cold armor, unable to tear his gaze away from Tony's face.  Blood cakes his left cheek and Steve thinks his skin looks like porcelain.

They get the plane up in the air before getting off his gear. Steve remembers the small manual latches at each hip and flips them open to receive an armful of shivering Stark. T’Challa wraps several provisional blankets around the pair as Steve keeps Tony pressed to his chest.

“Your elevated body heat will be his best bet for survival.  We can get him to medical once we're back in Wakanda, but that won’t be for many hours.  I also suggest getting him into some dry clothes if you're able.” The king gives the supersoldier a pack from the named lockers with a warm washcloth, lips staying straight and thin as he stares at the two heroes.

“I am relieved we found him alive.  I must admit, my faith in you is shaken, Captain Rogers.  After watching this man fight for your freedom and safety, I can now see that the respect was not mutual.”

Steve cannot meet T’Challa's gaze. He starts to strip his friend down, unreactive as he peels off the frozen pant suit and cleans the expected mess under his soiled underwear. Once reasonably clean and wearing fresh sweats and a tee, Tony gets repositioned so their chests connect and his frigid lips press against the base of Steve's neck.

“I'm sorry, Tony.  I never should have left you there.”

He mutters apologies and promises into Tony's damp hair, staving off his tears to keep the man dry.

 

***

 

Tony wakes up to heat and misery.  As he moans, the warmth recedes and Steve's sad face comes into focus.

“Are you okay?  Please be okay. I have some water that you really need to drink.”

He somehow nods, and the liquid down his throat feels like heaven. He smiles and slips back into the blonde’s arms after finishing half the bottle, savoring the feel of fire against his cold, sore limbs.

“I'm so sorry.  I know it's selfish, but you need to survive.  Please, Tony.”

“Sure, Cap.” His voice feels hollow and sounds broken, but Tony continues with simple words.

“Why sorry?  Stupid. Thanks.  Saved me.”

Tony falls back asleep, unbothered by Steve's trembling form.

 

***

 

“The last memory Mr. Stark has is when he was at MIT many weeks ago. He'd like to speak with you.  I believe the lack of other familiar faces is making him nervous. I trust that you will not repeat any mistakes.”

The king promises to go contact Potts after he sees the blonde nod. Steve makes his way into Tony's room, hating himself when his presence makes the man smile.

“Cap. Are we seriously in Wakanda?  I can tell by the tech in this room that they have some serious vibranium stashes still socked away.  Also, sidebar; where the hell was I? They said I have gaps in my memories and lots has happened since my BARF demo.  You okay there, Steve?”

His friendly brown eyes feel like bullets in Steve's gut.  He takes Tony's hand, weaving their fingers together and bringing the soft skin to his lips.

“I'm okay.  I'm just happy you're alive.”

Tony inspects their hands, face heating as he frees his fingers.

“I'm guessing we had a talk, then?  What all did I tell you?”

When he notices Steve's scrunched face, he releases an exasperated sigh.

“Come on, Cap.  Your sudden affection toward me is blindingly obvious.  I do remember you wanted to chat when I got back to the compound.  With everything falling apart with Pep, it's not unreasonable that I would make you aware of my long lived harboring crush.”

Steve swears his sternum cracks as a sharp, stinging pain claws as his chest.  He reaches and holds Tony's thigh still underneath the hospital covers, careful to keep his grip under control.

“Since when?”

“New York, maybe?  Steve?”

Tony takes his shoulders and pulls the supersoldier in for an embrace.  Steve drags the man closer and nearly into his lap as he starts to rock back and forth.

“I'm sorry, Tony. Just--give me a minute, then I'll fill you in on what you have forgotten.  I want to remember this before you hate me again.”

He holds the confused and concerned genius against his broken heart until he memorizes the feeling.  When he pulls back many minutes later, he starts speaking, holding Tony still in his arms as those warm, brown eyes turn hard and cold.  He takes the deserved slap, keeping the angry brunet in his grasp despite his resistance.

“Why would you let me say all that embarrassing shit, knowing what had actually happened?  Why did you come and get me? You should have let me die there, Rogers. That's obviously what I wanted.  Let me the fuck go!”

He relents when Tony's struggles start pulling at the IVs near his wrist.

“Please, Tony.  Don't say stuff like that.  Your life is important.”

“Just--tell me why you never told me.  You walked in when I was in the middle of a Binarily Augmented session.  Did you think I was reliving the moment before my parents died just for shits and giggles?”

Tony wipes away the tears that escape his narrowed gaze.  He drops his head and rests his forehead against Steve's collarbone and he punches the strong arms that find their way around him.

“I definitely over reacted.  Obviously you're right; Barnes is innocent.  But tell me why I acted the way I did. If you can tell me what went wrong, maybe you're not the fucking hypocritical robot you seem to be.  Maybe there is still something here left to salvage.”

Steve repeats his apologies from the Quinjet, detailing when he should have told Tony the truth about his family.  He stops his rambling after he shames himself again for his failure as a friend. Tony pulls back far enough to capture Steve's leaking blue stare, mouth turned downward but his eyes a bit brighter.

“Will you work with me to fix these documents?  Sounds like Barnes will be safe in Wakanda. We can leave him here and go back to the States.  Save the team and correct this mayhem.”

Steve nods despite his hesitance.  Before his nerve is lost, he presses his lips against the top of Tony's overgrown goatee, doing his best to make his promise seem real.

“Okay.  I'm going against my better instinct of absolute hatred and frustration and giving you another shot.  Since I can't remember you royally screwing the pooch, we can try to make this work. I won't promise anything when my memories return.  I doubt you're lying, and if you are you're a damn sadist, but I am guessing reliving the last few days will be no fucking walk in the park.”

Steve continues to nod, kissing the man's crow's feet next to his left eye before trapping his lips with an eager tongue and a clash of teeth.  Tony pulls away for air, but the smile at his lips makes Steve soar.

“Alright there, Romeo.  How about we make amends and clean up our mess before we allow ourselves to get too carried away.”

They share another smooch and smile before Steve lets Tony rest, plans already in the works and making them both better, happier men in the end.

**Author's Note:**

> So...yeah. There we go. A natural fix it with some memory loss and happy boys. Now back to studying.
> 
> Drop a note or leave a kudo (or both!!) if you enjoyed. Love all sorts of feedback. One of my most amusing/favorite reviews to date was someone just calling me a bitch (but with a question mark).
> 
> ~<3


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